Method of making resilient bearing sleeves



Apr. 10, 1923.

H. R. LONTZ METHOD OF MAKING RESILIENT BEARING SLEEVES Original Filed Aug. 22, 1919 I N V EN TOR.

EBY WWWIM tary cutter blades of a lawn-mower, to provide bearing with a resilient bearing sleeve" 9 which, under the influence of a spring, will coact. with the bearing members to take up Patented A r. 10, 1923.

UNlTEDs-ATES HARRY n. LONTZ, or nIcHr/ron'n, INDIANA.

METHOD OF MAKINGBESILIYENYT BEARING sLnnvEs.

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Original application filed nu ustza, 1919,5efia1 no. 319,223. Divided and this application inea ranuar Be it known that I, HARRY R." Lon'rz, a

citizen of the United States of America, and I a resident of Richmond, Indiana, have in- 3 vented an ImprovedMethod ofMaking Resilient Bearing Sleeves, .whichinventionis fully set forth in'the following specification.

This invention relates to themethodof making resilient bearing sleeves, and this application is a division of my" application "Sr. No. 319,223, filed August 22,1919.

It has heretofore been proposed, as in the patent of Brown, 'No. 1,031,417, granted July 2, 1912, wherein the invention is illus u'trated as embodied in a bearing for the ro- "any slack therebetween.butwhich will grip the shaft or other supporting member, when a properbearing pressure hasbeen obtained, toi'prevent the force ofthe spring'from being exerted on the bearing itself. Resilient bearingjsleeves of this typemus't be made of the proper size within very; close limits and, to avoid the expenseand labor ofmachining to: substantially mathematical exactness,

it has been proposed to make these sleeves of die castings. This manner of manufacture, however, has necessitated the use of a metal which lends itself to die-casting, and

it has been found exceedingly diflicult, if not.

impossible, to produce a resilient bearing sleeve by this method which is bothsufliciently resilient to perform its intended function and sufliciently tough and strong to withstand breakage during assemblinig and the exigencies offuse. It is an ob'ect of this invention to prO- vide a. bearing sleeve which is both .sufliciently resilient and strong and durable, and which can be manufactured with a minimum expenditure of time and labor.

' A furtherobject'of the inventionis to pro vide a resilient bearing sleeve of sheet metal,

preferably steehby stamping or pressing the I p stantially that of the shaft or other support same up in a simple and eflicient manner. I v

-Yet another "object of the invention is to provide a resilient bearing sleeve that is both lighter and stronger. than has been produced by methods heretofore in use. 4 A still further-object of theinvention is to provide a method of making a resilient bearing sleeve whereby a sleeve suitable for 12,1921. Serial No; 436,759.

assembly-in the bearing structure may be produced "by stamping operations only and whereby but a minimum of stamping operations are employed.

The invention is capable of receiving a "variety of expressions, one of which is illustrated on the accompanying drawings, but

it is to be expressly understood-that the drawings are fonpurp'oses, of illustration onlyand are'not to'b'e construed as a defini- 1 tion of the limits of the invention, reference being had purpose. s In said drawings:-.-

-f Fig. 1 is a plan view of the rough-" blank fromwhich the sleeve is to be pressed up; Fig. 2 is a section on line 2-2 of Fig. 1;' .Fig. 3 is a plan view 'of the trimmed blank, 1 Fig. 4 is a cross-sectionfbetweentwo of the radialarms showing the blank after the first forming" operation; 1 Figlb is a cross-section oftheblank after the secondf orming operation; Fig, 6 is a perspective'view offthejfinished sleeve; and f I i Y Figs. 7 and 8 are respectively bottom and top 'plan views-of the finished sleeve. In accordance with the. present invention, the resilient hearing sleeve isp'ressed up from sheet metal which, within the broader-aspects of this-invention, the sleeve may be stamped orfpressed up in any suitable'way, but the preferred procedure, and one which constitutes a part of the present inv'ention,

on whic-h the sleeve is to be ,mounted in the ompletcd bearing. l

The rough blank isthen sub-jected to"a" to. theappended claims for that finishing out by which. as shownin Fig. 3,

tl'ioarmsare given a sligrtly tapered forma tion and are cut away ad1acent where they join the hub-like depression 9 to form i duced neck-portions l0. Under some circumstances the roughing cut may be omitted and the blank cut from the sheet of metal in the finished form shown in Fig. 3; the procedure outlined, however, is preferred.

The blank is next subjected to a forming operation whereby the reduced neck-portions 10 are bent back upon themselves along lines intermediate of their length, as

shown in Fig. 4, whereby the body portions of the radial arms are bent a small angle to a plane right-angularly disposed tothe axis of the hub-like depression 9, as also clearly shown in F at. fln order to prevent thea-rms from buckling in the operation of the hearing, it is desirable to strengthen both their body portions and their necks.

This may be done by pressing a rib into the body port-ion of each arm, as shown at 11 :in- Fig. 6, and a corresponding rib into each neck, as shown at 12 in the same figure. While these reinforcing ribs may be pressed into the radial arms at any. suitable stage in the manufacture of the sleeves. it is preferred to form the ribs at the same time that performed. i

The blank is next subjected to a forming operation whereby the portions of the necks 10 whichhave been bent over are brought into a plane at substantially a right-angle the forming operation above described is to the axis of the hub-like depression 9, as

shown inFig'. 5. This bending operation I also brings the body portions of the radial arms to a position inclined at a small angle to the axisof the hub, as also clearly shown in Fig. 5. The bottom 13 of the depression 9 is then cut out to completethe hub, and the sleeve is subjected to a final forming operation whereby the resilient arms 8 are brought into their final axially-inclined positions, as shown in Fig. 6, the, diameter of the opening formed by the. free ends of said arms being slightly in excess of the diameter'of the shaft or other support on which the sleeve is to be mounted.

The-sleeve may thus be formed to substantially exact size without any machining,

operation, and possesses suflicientresiliency so that, when assembled in a bearing of the type described and illustrated in the patent to Brown aboye referred to, it will perform its function with maximum efficiency. At

" the same time the sleeve possesses sufiicient ing sleeve which comprises cutting a blank with radial arms'forming a hub-like part at the-center of said blank, bending back portions of said arms at their junction with the hub-like part and bending the remaining arm portions at an angle to the bent back arm portions, and re-bending the bent back arm portions to bring the arms into the form of a sleeve. a

2. The method of making a resilient bearing sleeve which comprises cutting a blank with radial arms, forming a hub-like part at the center of said blank, bending back portions of said arms at theirjui'iction with the hub-like part and bending the remaining arm portions at an angle to the bent back arm portions, and re-bending the bent back arm portions to incline the remaining arm portions toward the axis of the hublike part;

8. The method of making a resilient bearing sleeve which comprises cutting a blank with radial arms, forming a hub-like de pression at the center of said blank, bend-v.

ing back portions of said arms at their unction with the hublike depression and bending the remaining arm portions at an angle to the bent back arm portions, rebendmg the bent back arm portions. to bring the arms into the form of a sleeve, cutting out the bottom of said depression to formreduced portions and bending the body portions of the arms at an angle. to said reduced portions. and bending said reduced portions to bring the body portions of said arms into the form of a'sleeve.

5. The method of making a resilient bearingv sleeve which comprises cutting a blank with radial arms, forming a hub part at the center of said blank. bending back the innerarm portions at their junction with the hub part and bending the outer portions of said arms at an angle to the bent back inner portions, reinforcing said arms by pressing ribs therein, and re-bending the inner arm portions to incline the outer arm portions toward the axis ol, said hub part.

6. The method of making a resilient bear- 111g sleeve which comprises cutting a blank wlthradial arms, forming a hub-like depression at the center of the blank, reduc-- ing the width of the arms adjacent their junction with the hub-like depre'ssiombending back the reduced portions and bending the body portions of the arms at an angle to said reduced portions, and bending said reduced portions to bring the body portions of said arms into the form of a sleeve.

7. The method of making a resilient bearing sleeve which comprises cutting a blank with radial arms, forming a hub-like depression at the center of the blank, reducing the width of the arms adjacent their junction with the hub-like depression, bending the reduced portions back upon the hub-like depression and bending the body portions of the arms at an angle to said reduced portions, and bending the bent reduced portions into a plane at substantially a right-angle to the axis of said hublike depression to bring the body portions ing sleeve which comprises cutting a blank with radial arms, forming a hub-like depression at the center of the blank, reducing the Width of the arms adjacent their junction with said hub -like depression, bending said reduced portions back upon themselves along lines intermediate of their length and simultaneously bending the body portions of said arms at an angle to said reduced portions, and bending the bent reduced portions into a plane at substantially a right-angle to the axis of said hub-like depressionto bring the body portions of. said arms into the form of a sleeve.

9. The method of making a resilient bearing sleeve which comprises cutting a blank with radial arms, reducing the width of said arms adjacent their junction with the central portion of the blank, reinforcing said arms by pressing ribs into the body portions thereof and into. said reduced portions, and bending said arms into the form of asleeve.

In testimony whereof I have signed this specification.

HARRY R. LONTZ. 

